TRC co-founder Alex Boraine has died

The man who was vice chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission alongside Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has passed away.

Alex Boraine, who proposed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and went on to be its vice chairperson alongside Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, has passed away at age 87 on Wednesday, News24 has reported.

Jeremy Boraine, his son, confirmed that his father had passed away in the early hours of Wednesday after a long battle with illness. While he was in remission from cancer, he had reportedly stopped eating and had been growing weaker.

Boraine was a lawyer and theologian who is best known for putting forward the idea of South Africa having a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He went on to be its vice chair alongside Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, from 1996 to 1998.

From 1986 to 1995, Boraine headed two South African non-profit organisations concerned with ending apartheid and addressing the legacy it left behind.

In October 2000 Boraine was awarded the President’s Medal for Human Rights in Italy.

In November 2000, Boraine published a book titled A Country Unmasked, and in 2008 his biography, A Life in Transition.

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